The Pig and Swill, Cardiff pub review

A few of our mates who live in Cardiff’s Victoria Park say that it’s an area which has been crying out for somewhere decent to drink.

So, Andy Aston and Lewis Dwyer, the duo behind the excellent Hiraeth, have hopped to the rescue with the recent opening of the Pig and Swill, a modern pub located on the corner of Victoria Park.

They have 11 taps of craft beer on offer and on the day we visited, four of them were from Bristol’s Lost & Grounded as well as single taps from Flowerhorn, Anspach & Hobday and Nirvana Alcohol Free. It’ll be interesting to see how the selection evolves and if Lost & Grounded’s dominance is a permanent fixture.

I knocked back halves of Lost & Grounded's delicious Wanna Go to the Sun juicy pale ale and Saison Dupont-esque Saison D’Avon. 

If craft beer isn’t your thing, then there’s a selection of 17 wines by the glass and a handful of cocktails available too. Mrs G particularly enjoyed a bright and summery glass of Las Lilas Vinho Verde.

We visited the Pig & Swill on their second Saturday lunchtime and according to Andy they’d had a very busy first week with a few locals already making multiple visits to show their support.

As expected from the pair behind Hiraeth, the Pig and Swill's menu of nibbles and small plates is much more involved than your typical pub grub. However, if you're concerned that things might be a bit too fancy, I can reassure you that there are plenty of deep-fried things, stuff on toast, and even a bowl of chips on offer to soak up all that booze.

During our visit, an issue with the new till system meant we had to order and pay for drinks at the bar whilst food was ordered and paid for at the table. I've been reassured that this is going to be resolved soon so that if you're eating you'll be able to order a drink at the table as well. More casual drinkers will still be able to prop up the bar. 

Going forward, it’ll also be interesting to see how they manage the balance between people just drinking and those wanting food, as it’s currently walk-ins only in a relatively small space. 

There wasn’t a long wait for our food, and when it arrived, everything came out at the same time. This was fine as we’re champion speed-eaters but it’s worth bearing in mind if you’re ordering plenty and concerned that your food is going to get cold whilst you’re picking at it.

We focused on one dish at a time and a pair of beautifully meaty and oily mackerel fillets (£10) with nicely torched skin drew our attention first. They were sat on giant couscous-like fregola pasta that were coated in a rich savoury stock imbued with the fiery and porky heat of ‘nduja.

Crab rarebit (£9) was the second dish we got stuck into and coincidentally, it was the second time in just over a month that I’ve eaten this same dish at different restaurants. Here, a thin slice of toasted Pettigrew sourdough was topped with a melted cheese sauce that delivered a wallop of earthy crustacean. It was a very good riff on the classic dish.

We both agreed that a chicken schnitzel (£10) was our favourite plate of the meal. Juicy chicken breast coated in crisp breadcrumbs and a golden yolked fried egg were bang on. But, it was a café de Paris sauce that turbocharged the dish. Rich and buttery with a warming hit of curry and the zip of briny capers, it was one hell of a sauce.

Our other fried treat was slow-cooked beef cromesqui (£8). Crisp panko crumbs cocooned shreds and nuggets of tender beef in a gorgeously thick gravy. Slices of pickled onion, a dusting of parmesan, and bacon frazzle shards brought complexity, crunch and MSG to the party. On the side, a carrot puree added some sweetness to the plate, but it was the one element of the meal which had turned tepid by the time we turned our attention to it.

Tender charred carrots (£7) were sat on a bed of earthy and warming spiced morcilla puree and topped with a good handful of toasted almonds. I’ve come to the realisation that my favourite kind of veg dishes are the ones which are at least 30% meat. This very much fit the mould.

In the absence of any dessert options, I decided to round off the meal with a sausage roll (£8). Golden flaky pastry was wrapped around dense and juicy well-seasoned minced pork. On the side, a blob of fruity and not too sweet homemade ketchup almost had a bloody Mary kind of thing going on. 

We really liked the Pig and Swill and their extensive booze selection and well-priced elevated pub grub is sure to be a big asset to Victoria Park. After lunch, I felt as happy as a pig in mud as we strolled back to the other side of Cardiff. 

The Details

Address - The Pig and Swill, 1 Victoria Park Road West, Cardiff, CF5 1EZ

Web - https://www.instagram.com/thepigandswill/

Hiraeth, Victoria Park, Cardiff restaurant review 2025

It’s fair to say that Pontcanna is Cardiff’s swanky restaurant epicentre. 

Cardiff's boujiest district is home to Gorse, Cardiff’s only Michelin starred restaurant, the two other Tom(my)’s eponymous restaurants, Heaney’s and Thomas, and a pair of the city’s most exciting recent openings, Ember and Sonder. 

So, despite Hiraeth being just a mile down the road in Victoria Park, it perhaps feels slightly out of sight and out of mind.

However, after enjoying an excellent set lunch there last December, I’ve been itching for a return ever since. 

The stars aligned when friends invited us along to use a 20% off food voucher they’d received through their letterbox to encourage locals to give Hiraeth a go. 

In addition to their set lunch, Hiraeth offers an eight (£70) and ten course tasting menu (£90) that changes monthly. We visited for dinner on the last day of the month and so our ten course menu consisted of dishes that straddled both August and September. 

Hiraeth’s cooking brings together big, comforting flavours, inspired by a diverse mix of influences, including Wales, France, India, China and Japan.

Wines were all excellent – a citrusy Vilarnau Cava (£38), aromatic Thomas Stopfer Gruner Veltliner (£38), red fruity Calusari Romanian Pinot Noir (£30) and a glass of Kopke Tawny Port (£7) to round off the meal. 

We kicked off with Hiraeth’s riff on prawn toast and it was a corker of a substitute for a Saturday night takeaway. Sweet fried brioche, a kick of togarashi shichimi and salty pearls of flying fish roe all took it up a notch.

A golden dinky doughnut was glazed with mustard, filled with a pokey Tunworth cheese custard and topped with a sweet hit of red onion jam and a flurry of savoury Old Winchester cheese. 

Hiraeth’s chicken course is a mainstay of their menu, and I can see why. Beautifully executed karaage chicken was gorgeously juicy, marinated in ginger and garlic, and topped with the punch of sriracha mayo and furikake. It was as good as any we ate in Japan.

Light, soft and sweet Japanese milk bread was excellent slathered with umami-rich and meaty chicken skin butter. Finally, a whopping flavoured chicken consommé and dashi blend was a gloriously meaty and savoury comforting bowlful.

Verdant freshness arrived with the next course. A well-judged watercress porridge was essentially a risotto made with oats instead of rice. The grains had just the right amount of bite, were flecked with sweet peas, broad beans and runner beans and topped with crisp nori and creamy frozen goats curd. 

Indulgence returned with our first fish plate. A brilliantly crisp skinned and flaky fillet of gilt head bream was sat in a bowlful of rich and buttery café de Paris sauce seasoned with a warming wallop of curry. 

A meaty fillet of monkfish was cooked precisely with a good meaty texture and a char-licked exterior from its Indian spiced yoghurt marinade. A creamy raita, the sweet spice of dried chillies and raisins, and the crunch of poppadom shards completed the delicious plate. 

Lamb part one was reminiscent of an old skool suet pudding, and I was fully on board with it. A crusty yet soft suet bun was filled with slow-cooked shredded lamb belly, coated in a sticky lamb jus and topped with the crunch of toasted breadcrumbs. The only downer was a pair of gritty cockles that detracted from rather than added to the already excellent dish.

Lamb part deux was an excellent contrast to the sticky richness of part one. Pink and super tender lamb fillet with well-crisped fat was served alongside a sweet and savoury sundried tomato emulsion that was balanced by the lightness of sauce vierge and chard, which had been grown by one of the front of house staff. 

The transition to dessert came with a scoop of light and fragrant mugwort ice cream and the crunch of feuilletine wafer and honeycomb, which were balanced by the cleansing acidity of fresh orange pieces. 

Hiraeth’s riff on tiramisu was a proper boozy boi. A dollop of dark chocolate mousse was flavoured with Kahlua and Cointreau whilst an aerated cream was laced with bourbon and marsala. Throw in the crunch of biscuit crumbs and shavings of dark chocolate and this was an excellent dessert. 

Finally, our cheese course, saw a slice of warm and sweet bara brith topped with a quenelle of perl wen cream and served alongside a blob of plum chutney and crispy onions. Whilst it was very tasty, we both felt the cheese was a little bit too delicate and that the crispy onions tipped things a little too far towards the savoury.  

We had an excellent meal at Hiraeth and I’m a big fan of their fun, huge flavoured and technically accomplished cooking in a relaxed yet slick setting. If you’re looking for a special meal in Cardiff and want a change from Pontcanna then it’s most definitely worth travelling a mile down the road to Victoria Park. 

The Details:

Address - Hiraeth, 587 Cowbridge Road East, Cardiff CF5 1BE
Web - https://www.hiraethkitchen.com/

Hiraeth, Victoria Park, Cardiff restaurant review

“A blend of homesickness, nostalgia and longing, ‘hiraeth’ is a pull on the heart that conveys a distinct feeling of missing something irretrievably lost.”

It’s also perhaps an inadvertently fitting name for Victoria Park’s newest restaurant.

Because Hiraeth, the restaurant that is, is currently on its third home in less than 2 years.

Having settled in at their initial home in a former pub near Cowbridge and gained listings in the Michelin and Good Food guides, they were turfed out just a year after opening when the building they rented was put up for sale at the end of 2023.

They then had a brief stint at Court Colman near Bridgend but from an outsider’s perspective it never seemed like a natural fit. Perhaps because a traditional country house hotel isn’t quite the right setting for modern and intimate Welsh dining.

So, now Hiraeth’s chef-owners Lewis Dwyer (who you might recognise from this year’s Great British Menu) and Andy Aston, have settled in Cardiff’s Victoria Park on the former site of Nook and Mangla’s Spice of Life. On a Wednesday lunchtime the cosy dining room was buzzing. It felt like a restaurant that had inhabited this space for years.

I’m always a sucker for a set lunch menu as it offers an affordable way to experience high end restaurants before committing to a full-blown tasting menu. At Hiraeth, £35 buys you bread, three courses and a glass of wine. It’s a bloody good deal and to be fair, their six-course tasting menu for £65 seems reasonable too.

Hiraeth’s weekly changing set lunch menu offers a choice of two starters, three mains and two desserts with a couple of additional snack and side options.

On the wine front, there was a choice of a Spanish white or Italian red but they kindly let Mrs G’s mum have a glass of Cava as she only drinks wine if it fizzes. A glass of floral white rioja and easy drinking Vilarnau Cava were both delicious. They also get extra swank marks for serving the bubbles in a coupe glass.

I’ve heard great things about Hiraeth’s bread and it most certainly lived up to expectations. A beautifully light, soft and sweet warm Japanese milk loaf glistened with herb butter and was served with a quenelle of savoury and meaty chicken skin butter that was flecked with the odd crispy bit of its headline ingredient. We’ve got plenty of top-drawer flavoured butters in Cardiff and this is deserving of its place in the A-list.

Roast cauliflower soup had huge boredom potential, but Hiraeth’s version was anything but dull. Thick and velvety, it tasted like it was made with as much butter and cream as cauliflower. It was zhushed up by a pretty garnish of crunchy crushed pistachios, caraway seeds, mouth warming pepper and I’m sure plenty of other spices too.

Mrs G really enjoyed a torched fillet of oily mackerel that was paired with the traditional accompaniment of roast and pickled beetroot as well as a grating of tangy goats curd and a salty and umami black olive tapenade.

It’s always great to see retro classics appearing on restaurant menus and a suet pudding is about as old skool as it gets. A golden, crisp and squidgy suet-crusted pudding was a handsome devil.

Its filling was a cracker too - long cooked shreds of beef shin and an ooze of pokey cheddar. On the side was a slab of earthy roast celeriac and a savoury and tangy puree, which I think must have been black garlic and mushroom based on the menu description.

Mrs G also highly rated a crisp-skinned fillet of grey mullet and plump briny cockles that were perched on top of comforting fregola pasta balls coated in a big-flavoured sauce with a good hit of seafood.

Sides were just as well considered as the main dishes themselves.

Sprouts (£6), with a good crisping and caramelisation, were flecked with fragrant sage leaves and loads of nuggets of salty pancetta. I’m all in favour of vegetable side dishes which are equal parts meat.

 

Sweet roasted carrots (£6) were covered with a flurry of crunchy and compellingly smoky almonds.

Desserts were both dinky but decadent. Considering how rich they were, it was all that was needed.

Silky smooth and creamy caramel ice cream was drizzled with caramel and served alongside pieces of warming ginger cake and a slab of crunchy almond brittle. An all-important scattering of sea salt brought balance to the dish.

Light and airy yet intense chocolate mousse was garnished with hunks of toasty cinder toffee and the boozy kick of rum soaked raisins.

I was really impressed by Hiraeth’s modern yet comforting cooking and it was lovely to engage with the chefs as they served food from the open kitchen.

Hiraeth certainly shouldn’t long for things it has lost - it belongs in Victoria Park.

The Details:

Address - Hiraeth, 587 Cowbridge Road East, Cardiff CF5 1BE

Web - https://www.hiraethkitchen.com/

Pettigrew Bakeries, Cardiff review

Despite the unrelenting invasion of Geordie chain bakery Greggs and their disturbingly addictive sausage cylinders, things are looking up for baked goods in Cardiff.

In the last few years purveyors of banging bread and kick ass pastries One Mile Bakery, Nata & Co, Cocorico, Brod, Cup & Cake Bakery and The Early Bird Bakery have all opened their doors. Furthermore, Alex Gooch’s multi-award winning bread is readily available from retailers including Bean Freaks and Penylan Pantry.

Now, the team from the lovely Pettigrew Tea Rooms have tastefully transformed an old hardware shop near Victoria Park into Pettigrew Bakeries.

When I visited first thing on a Sunday morning, a multitude of baked goods were still being unloaded from the ovens. I stocked up on the below (the bill came to around £10.50), dashed home and snaffled the lot immediately. The concept of delayed gratification has always been alien to me. 

A salted caramel tart was a thing of wonder and joy. A molten slick of well balanced sweet and salty caramel was cradled by a perfectly short pastry case.

A sourdough loaf was full of complexity with a cracking crumb and golden crust. 

Surprisingly, Pettigrew’s sausage rolls aren’t made in house but are supplied by Coopers of Shrewsbury. A pork, Shropshire blue and caramelised onion roll was still rather lush - the bulging bronzed pastry cocooning a generous amount of flavour-packed sausage meat. 

I wasn’t entirely sold on a piece of bread pudding - whilst it was well flavoured with cinnamon and raisins, it was slightly dense and claggy. 

But, a chocolate brownie was a stunning example of its type - all goo and crunch of nut.

Pettigrew Bakeries is a lovely addition to the Victoria Park area of Cardiff. Viva la pastry revolución.

The Details:

Address - Pettigrew Bakeries, 595 Cowbridge Rd E, Cardiff, South Glamorgan CF5 1BE

Web - http://www.pettigrew-bakeries.co.uk/

Telephone - 02921 321270